Archive for the ‘Planning’ Category

Setting SMART Goals for 2009

by admin on Wednesday, December 17th, 2008

As they new year approaches a lot of entrepreneurs will start reviewing the successes and failures of 2008 and planning for 2009.

Of course, planning for your business is a great idea - but how do you ensure that the goals you set are goals that you can achieve and not just wishful thinking?

One way is to set S.M.A.R.T. goals: Specific, Measurable, Agreed Upon, Realistic and Time Based.

Setting Specific Goals

Specific goals are detailed, clearly defined goals. ‘We’re going to improve our position in the market in 2009′ is not clearly defined. What does ‘improve’ mean, which ‘market’? Be as clear about your goals as possible.

Setting Measurable Goals

Measurable goals takes clearly defined and adds a number. Achieving 10% growth in sales is measurable, reducing costs by £5000 is measurable. ‘Improving customer service’ is not measurable but ‘increasing customer retention rate to 95%’ is measurable.

Setting Agreed Goals

Everyone needs to be pulling in the same direction in order for you to achieve the goals you set down. Even if your entire business consists of just you, there are still others with whom you should discuss your goals. Is you significant other behind you? What about your bank manager, your suppliers or your professional advisors?

Setting Realistic Goals

Goals are designed to motivate and provide you with a direction to focus your energies. Big goals are great, but, if 2 months into the year you realise that you have no chance of achieving them then they can actually serve to demotivate.

Setting Time Based Goals

SMART goals have a deadline. The new year provides an ideal time frame for achieving your newly set goals - in 2009. However it’s often useful to set shorter term goals to measure your success against and ensure that there are no ‘down’ periods. What will you aim to achieve by July 1st? What’s the goal for the end of January?

As always, be realistic with the amount of time you allow yourself - too little and it’ll be unrealistic, too much and it won’t challenge you. But once you’ve set your time based goals don’t allow yourself to ‘move’ the goalposts.

One of the best ways to help set and keep on track to achieve your goals is to find a business mentor to work with.

Join acfuse.com for free and find a mentor for your business.

Tags: 2009, acfuse.com, business plan, business planning, entrepreneurs, goals, mentor, new business, Planning, small business, smart goals

Planning · No Comments

Is it time to quit your day job?

by admin on Tuesday, December 16th, 2008

It’s the dream of many entrepreneurs to walk into work, hand in their notice and never look back.

Free from the shackles of the 9-5 you’ll be able to focus on building your business and enjoying the life you’ve always wanted.

But is quitting your day job really the right idea?

Three questions to ask before you quit the day job

Do You Have Enough Money?

This could be all three reasons as it’s the most obvious and the most critical. New businesses need money to run and to grow.

You need money too. You need money to live on, to pay the mortgage and to fall back on in case of any emergency.

Before you pack in the day job you need to do some serious planning. How much is your business going to cost to set up? How much will it cost to run each month? How much do you need personally?

Add all these together for the next 12 months and you’ll start to get a feel for the kind of money you’ll need to have set aside. Of course, you’re new business should be earning money as soon as possible but how realistic are your projections?

What happens if you only do half as much business as you hope? What is customers and clients take longer to pay you?

Plan your finances in detail and get professional help where you can. Always underestimate the amount of money you will make and overestimate the amount you will have to spend.

If, after all that, the numbers still make sense, you need to ask …

What can you do while still at work?

Is your day job really holding you back from following your dreams or is there work that you can be doing to help move them forward - and still keep the monthly paycheck?

Many successful businesses can be started part time - putting in the hours in the morning, at nights and on the weekend. There are 168 hours in a week, you’re at work for 40 of them. Even if you get a solid eight hours sleep a night you’ve still got over 70 hours left.

What could you accomplish by spending 20 of those hours working on your business?

If you can find ways of getting hanging on to your salary while still building your business it’ll be much less risky when you finally do take the plunge.

Are you really ready?

You’re never too young to start a business.

But it it is possible to be under-prepared. Do you know enough about your industry? Do you have the skills, the qualifications and the contacts?

Ever good entrepreneur wants to get started on their business idea yesterday - but sometimes the best bet is to do as much as you can pre-launch to ensure your success when you do go it alone.

If you can do that with a salary, why not?

Tags: 9 to 5, business plan, business planning, entrepreneurs, Finance and investment, new business, small business, startup

General, Planning · No Comments

Finding a Mentor for Your Startup Business

by admin on Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Does Your Startup Business Need a Mentor?

If you watch shows like Dragon’s Den, you’ll notice that many of the entrepreneurs on show are less worried about valuations and equity stakes than getting the expertise and contacts of a Dragon working for their business.

Every new business needs to make difficult decisions - decisions about strategy, finance or marketing.

Finding an experienced mentor can help.

A mentor is simply someone from outside your business who is willing and able to provide advice and support. An experienced sounding board who can help you make those critical decisions but who is also removed enough from the business to be able to deliver a balanced, external point of view.

Why do you need a mentor and what will they look like?

1. Experience: In an ideal world your mentor will be experienced in your industry but at the least they will bring a wealth of business experience to the table.

2. Contacts and Reputation: Your ideal mentor will also be able to help open doors through their network of contacts or simply by their reputation. Having a mentor attached to your business also gives you more credibility when dealing with investors, banks, suppliers and potential clients and customers.

3. Critical Eye: Sometimes it’s hard to accept criticism when you are so close to a project. A good mentor can offer that critical assessment and external point of view needed to help you make positive changes.

Where can you find a mentor?

Acfuse.com has been designed to allow entrepreneurs, investors and business partners to come together in one place. Within the scope of business partners there’s a decent chance that you’ll be able to find experienced business people willing to lend a hand.

Unfortunately, other than that, mentors don’t tend to advertise, so where can you find one?

1. Investors: If you’ve been seeking external investment, consider their willingness to bring their talents to the table. Although ideally mentors will be a bit more removed from the business, investor mentors can still deliver huge benefits.

2. Local Business Community: Scan your local business community: Who do you know? Who do you admire? Who has a proven track record of success? Many successful business people will be surprisingly willing to help. Remember, they’ve been where you are now.

3. Industry: Likewise, whom within your industry could you approach?

4. Mentor Programs: Various regional business organisations run mentoring programs for startup businesses. Get in touch with your local enterprise agency and see what they offer.

Less Formal Mentoring Arrangements

Although having a mentor dedicated to helping you succeed is ideal – some entrepreneurs either cannot find a mentor to work with or simply don’t like the idea.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look for help.

If a single dedicated mentor isn’t for you, what about multiple, virtual mentors? Who are the businesses and entrepreneurs that you admire in your marketplace? Who are the thought leaders writing about your industry?

Get in touch. Let them know who you are. Engage with them. Learn from them. Even if you never meet, you can learn a lot from following the moves and the thinking of successful people.

Smart entrepreneurs understand that they can never do it all themselves and are keen to plug the holes in their knowledge and experience. Finding a mentor could be the kick your business needs to go from idea to success.

What do you think? Do you have a mentor or people you turn to for advice? Where did you find them?

Join acfuse.com for free now.

Tags: mentor, mentoring, small business, startup business